About the win

Đặng Thái Sơn won the tenth edition in 1980, becoming the first Asian pianist to take first prize. The result was overshadowed at the time by the storm surrounding the elimination of Ivo Pogorelić, but Đặng's poetic Chopin has long since spoken for itself.

Key facts

• First Asian pianist to win the Chopin Competition (1980).
• Studied in Moscow after being discovered in wartime Vietnam.
• His victory came in the edition famous for the Pogorelić controversy.
• A leading teacher today; his students include 2021 winner Bruce Liu.